Pop Culture Favorites of 2020

Well, that sucked, huh? Half-assed effort for a half-assed year. Let's go.

The Pretty Damn Goods of 2020

Tom Pelphrey in Season Three of Ozark

Even though Ozark has become one of the most resoundingly popular shows in television, it seemed like every mention of the third season online came down to one thing: that the guy playing Wendy’s brother is running circles around every other actor in the show. The most gripping part of the season, and maybe the whole show, is that five-minute monologue he gives in the back of the taxi. I can think of few other examples of a piece of writing that illustrate someone who has truly fallen apart.

Haim - "Gasoline"

Haim make good time tunes, but I’m still not sure I made it all the way to the end of Women in Music Pt. III because I could not stop replaying this song. I’ve talked before about my new music chops being rusty, and that’s largely due to getting hung up on something I like and going no further. “Gasoline” is one such example. Tremendous song.

Future Islands - "For Sure"

There’s little I enjoy more in music than synths and some bass. Future Islands’ “For Sure” has that in spades. It’s almost cinematic and bordering on orchestral at times. I don’t know, I’m garbage at describing songs. It’s great, listen to it.

Post Malone's Nirvana Tribute

April sucked for everyone. A brief light in that darkness was the unexpected livestream of Post Malone, Travis Barker and co. covering Nirvana songs to benefit the WHO. Post Malone’s music itself is hit or miss for me, but he seems like an earnest dude. This set proves not only is he a talented singer and musician, but he’s clearly not fronting about being a Nirvana fan. It was a fairly rip-roarin’ performance that served as an entertaining distraction from the dread of the moment, as well as a benefit to those who were serving us at the time. “School” was the personal favorite of the night.

Another Round

Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen and director Thomas Vinterberg collaborated on a film from 2012 called The Hunt, a drama about the fallout in a community when a respected elementary school teacher is wrongly accused of being a pedophile. It sounds like a heavy-handed premise that's a recipe for a good old-fashioned scourge, but in fact, it's one of the most masterfully written and acted movies I've seen in the last ten years. Its deft way of depicting the consequences of a series of mistakes left an impact that hasn't softened in the years since I saw it. Last year, the pair collaborated again on a film about a group of mid-life friends who set out on an experiment to maintain a perpetual blood alcohol level of .02. They also all work at a high school. What results is simultaneously expected yet surprising, condemning yet praising. The Danish culture surrounding alcohol is one that seems almost entirely unrelatable to the rest of the outside world, and Another Round does not seek to make a statement on the place of alcohol in humanity. Like The Hunt, Another Round's characters and the consequences of their actions make for fascinating depictions of what alcohol does not only to us, but occasionally for us. Another Round's stance is arguably ambiguous, but it leaves a thought-provoking aftermath for the viewer in its wake.

Favorites of 2020

10. Season Two of The Umbrella Academy

This is a show that I would never have been interested in watching if not for the recommendation from some guys on a podcast I listen to call Shoot the Dancing Bear. They’re an academic lot, and I first became aware of them after searching for some commentary on the movie The Lighthouse. I finished that movie in a daze and was looking for someone to talk me through what I’d just seen. I took to their style of analysis and continued to follow them. They don’t often talk pop culture, but one day they had an episode on The Umbrella Academy. I like listening to what they have to say, so I said what the hell and gave the two existing seasons a shot. Season one is not my favorite thing in the world. It’s a bit dour but most of the characters are well-written and -acted, but the season ends in a place that keeps you hooked to follow into the next. Season two, on the other hand, is a blast (from the past). Where season one tended toward the morose, two is loads of fun. The stakes are still plenty high and thrills abound. This was a perfect example of why I don’t fully give up on these lists, because if those guys hadn’t done an episode on The Umbrella Academy, I would never have given it a shot. I did and am thoroughly grateful.

9. Palm Springs

I think Palm Springs gave me the hardest belly laughs of any movie last year. Even though it owes a multitude to its time-looping forebear Groundhog Day, it manages to reach its own new level of originality and comedy within that structure. Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti are a fantastic pair, and J.K. Simmons does his thing, as anyone would expect. It’s just a fun time. Fun times were few and far between last year, but Palm Springs was the perfect temporary respite, and a fantastic comedy in any year.

8. Judas and the Black Messiah

Daniel Kaluuya has become a can’t-miss performer. That guy is locked into everything he does. The tragic story of Fred Hampton is not entirely new to anyone familiar with Malcolm X and the tribulations of the fight for civil rights in the 1960s, but his story has never taken center stage on the big screen. Kaluuya's performance is the main takeaway from the movie, but the craftsmanship of the film itself is impressive. Right at the outset it feels like a 70s Scorsese movie. The camerawork isn’t conventional, and everything feels authentic to the period. It’s far from perfect, but when it works, it works incredibly well. There are few occasions when I’m watching something and am present enough to realize that I’m watching something that will become an instant classic. Kaluuya’s “I am a revolutionary” scene was one such moment. When they play clips at award shows in the future that exemplify the power of movies, they’ll include that clip forever. Lakeith Stanfield is certainly no slouch, and he wears his character’s torment and on his face like few actors today. Jesse Plemons continues to deliver in another nuanced performance as well. Judas and the Black Messiah is an impressive outing all around, and it’s going to be well-deserved when Daniel Kaluuya accepts his Oscar on Sunday night.

 

7. The Last Dance

I think most of us that were here to experience it will always associate The Last Dance with the early days of the Covid lockdowns. We were all connected around two things: Tiger King and The Last Dance. While the former was one of the most thoroughly unenjoyable experiences of my life, the latter was must-see tv. I reluctantly gave into the global pressure to watch The Last Dance. I don’t enjoy basketball. I used to, but the Mississippi State Bulldogs broke my heart for the last time in 2010 and I haven’t looked back. The truth is, though, whether or not you were around to experience the magic of Jordan and the Bulls firsthand, The Last Dance is a riveting account of that period for any generation. Despite my reservations, The Last Dance is a top-tier documentary.

6. Season Two of What We Do in the Shadows

The funniest show on television is a three-way race in my opinion. Succession leaves me belly-laughing in ways I never expected. The Righteous Gemstones made me cry-laugh in ways that I fully expected. But What We Do in the Shadows is impressive in ways that I can scarcely begin to describe. The half-hour episodic comedy structure can and has become tiresome. Its future relies on writing and performances and camerawork that transcend the structure. What We Do in the Shadows has it all. The characters on paper are a stroke of genius, and when they’re brought to life, it results in the unassailably best cast in comedic television today. If there’s a show that has more hilarious guest stars, I haven’t seen it. It’s a rare and beautiful occasion when I watch something where, for its entire duration, I never stop smiling. What We Do in the Shadows provides such an occasion every single episode.

5. Tom Segura Learns Bert Kreischer Drinks A Gallon of Kool-Aid Every Day - 

2 Bears, 1 Cave Episode #36

(Link to the clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGwLJWPPgrc)

Tom Segura is one of my favorite comedians working today. His best friend Brent Crystal is pretty cool, too. Fans of Tom will know that his laughter is a pretty effective cure-all for whatever ails you. Last June, on an episode of their podcast 2 Bears, 1 Cave, Bert said in passing that he was going to take a sip of Kool-Aid from a 64-ounce jug. Clearly confused, Tom insisted that surely he was kidding. Upon confirmation that Bert, a 47-year-old man, had indeed made himself a 64-ounce jug of Kool-Aid, Tom loses his mind with uncontrollable laughter. He repeatedly looks from the jug to Bert like he can't actually believe it, yet somehow it's exactly what he'd expect. In the middle of everything, Bert says he tries to drink two of them every day. This clip is the perfect slice of their relationship, and it's the perfect rainy-day perk-up whenever you need a lift.

4. Tame Impala - The Slow Rush

“Do you remember we were standing here a year ago?” 

To borrow from the vernacular of the professional wrestling world, when it comes to Tame Impala, I am what they sometimes refer to as a mark. I lap up whatever is served into my bowl and thank them while begging for more, even if it’s pickle juice-laced coffee. Tame Impala is my favorite musical entity. Kevin Parker, that is. He and Bruce Springsteen are 1A-1B depending on the day and mood. The Slow Rush is not perfect, in fact there are a couple of songs that are instant skips. But any Tame Impala is better than most things that aren’t Tame Impala. The most significant result of The Slow Rush is that , having come out on Valentine's Day, its unintended proximity to the pandemic turned it into a sort of hopeful message for the terrifying present. “One More Year” became a message sent back from a future where everything is already OK. “Breathe Deeper” became a mantra that this, too, shall pass. “Tomorrow’s Dust” served as a reminder that everything, bad or good, is temporary. “On Track” showed that everyone faces setbacks and subsequent adjustments are always part of life. The Slow Rush is clearly about time in all its forms, but its own place in time will always be associated with the state of the world. However coincidental, there is a certain beauty in that.

3. Season Five of Better Call Saul

Better Call Saul asks a lot of you. It mostly asks patience. Through the bulk of season two and into season three, that request was tested. Fast-forward to season five, and you have a not insignificant collection of people proclaiming that Better Call Saul is better than Breaking Bad. That argument seems insane on its face, but if you’ve kept up with the show, you know that doesn’t ring too far off from true. The greatness of one over another is obviously arguable, but one thing in particular about Better Call Saul is inarguably better than its forebear, and that is the filmmaking. Perhaps it helps that those involved with the show largely have the experience of an entire series and four seasons of another under their belts, but my god, some of these shots look like they belong in a David Lean movie. Other times there are shots that look like they would fit in a John Woo movie. The talent involved in making this show cannot be overpraised. And I haven’t even mentioned the people onscreen. Much like Shrek’s onion, the layers of Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler continue to reveal themselves in shocking and surprising ways. This show is rewarding to the long-haul viewer. Seeds that were sown initially have taken root and are bringing forth sustenance in the show’s homestretch. The initial tediousness is paying dividends. There are moments of brilliance, hilarity, grief, sadness, pity, fear, exhilaration, and sheer terror. We have one more season to go. Even though it precedes an entire series, I have no idea where it’s going. And I can’t wait.

2. Promising Young Woman

The experience of watching this movie is why I watch movies. Sometimes you sit down to watch a movie knowing what the premise is, and you get a little cocky. You think you know what you’re getting into and where it’s headed. You’re already ahead of it before it gets started. Ok, maybe “you” is only “me” in this case, and that doesn’t happen to anyone else, but occasionally I judge something. In the case of Promising Young Woman, my crow was served to me through a firehose. This was the best movie I saw all year. Clearly, we didn’t get the full slate of the films that were intended last year, but the fact remains that Promising Young Woman is a powerhouse. When it was over, my jaw was on the floor and my hands were in the air. It’s certainly not for everyone, and it makes you reckon with some unsettling ideas, but I’ve never seen anything like it, and I will damn sure never forget it.

1. ZeroZeroZero

Shouts to Chris Ryan and Andy Greenwald of The Watch podcast for directing me last spring to the show of the year. Have you ever watched something and in the middle of it you ask yourself, “How the hell did they make this?” ZeroZeroZero is a (limited?) series that focuses on characters in three different parts of the world as a massive shipment of cocaine makes its way from Mexico onto a ship that then makes its way across the ocean to Africa, with its ultimate desired destination being in the hands of a crime syndicate in Italy. The scale and scope of this show is astounding beyond words. It’s part Lawrence of Arabia and part Scarface. It's part Traffic and part Indiana Jones. It's part Black Hawk Down and part The Godfather. It's just one of the greatest achievements I've ever seen in my life, if I may wax hyperbolic yet again. There are compositions in this show that are seared into my brain. There are performances that will haunt me forever. Hauntings are often associated with trauma and pain, but these are hauntings of awe, and ones of which I will be forever grateful. Strap in if you dare.

Pop Culture Favorites of 2019

I'm pretty much socially dead online, and it feels great. After years of being too scared to disconnect from Twitter, I gave it up after I got back from my honeymoon last October. I realized I hadn't been on it in a week and I didn't miss it. I took advantage of that, deleted the app from my phone and haven't looked back. I don't even know if you can permanently delete your Twitter account, but I would refrain anyway, if only because I have nowhere else in the world to place these damn lists I feel compelled to do. Truthfully, the only compulsion comes from having done them for nine years now. I suppose it's the one thing I don't want to completely abandon online. Even if no one reads them, I enjoy considering everything I see in a year within the measurables I started for myself in 2011. Now let's finish out the decade:

The Pretty Damn Goods of 2019

"Daisy" by Pond

Massive Tame Impala fan that I am, I’ve tried to find everything Kevin Parker has been associated with, and there is nothing better his Aussie buddies’ band Pond. Perhaps they tire of Kevin’s name perpetually existing alongside every mention of their band, but Pond’s psychedelic rock material stands on its own as quality material. The third single from their most recent album, Tasmania, is “Daisy”. It was released just days into 2019 and nothing came to top it for my favorite song of the year. From its soft, sweet-sounding opening to the thumping shift into full-on pop track, “Daisy” is a joy start to finish.

Under the Silver Lake 

This movie is basically a fever dream. It's arguably entirely nonsense, but it was engrossing in a way I seldom encounter. It feels like an old '40s noir, one man's odyssey into the unknown, complete with the old-fashioned matte painting landscapes in the distance. When it was over, I wasn't entirely sure what had just transpired over the previous two and a quarter hours, but in the months since, I find myself thinking about it repeatedly. Under the Silver Lake is certainly divisive, and it's not prestige cinema or "Oscar worthy" by any stretch, but it made a lasting impression. Some movies don't work for some people. Some do. In this case I'm the latter.

The Watchmen soundtrack

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross began the last decade composing one of the all-time cinematic scores for The Social Network. In the years since, they have established themselves as one of the premier sonic mood creators in the business, all while sprinkling in new music and tours with Nine Inch Nails. The Watchmen series itself was a fascinating exercise in storytelling, but I often became distracted focusing on how perfect the musical mood was. I’ve found myself pulling up the soundtrack on YouTube just to have it going in the background while I’m doing other things. The compositions work on their own as great pieces of music to listen to anytime, but when they accompanied the show itself, everything fit like a glove.

The end of Doctor Sleep

(mild spoilers)

Both Doctor Sleep the book and movie are worthy successors to The Shining. As fans of the material well know, both The Shining the book and the movie differ a great deal, so much so that Stephen King himself has a notorious dislike for the movie. Both movies have similar running times, but The Shining moves at a much brisker pace than Doctor Sleep. At some moments it becomes a bit sluggish, but I’ve said many times if a movie that struggles finishes strong, that’s all I ever hope for. Man, does Doctor Sleep stick the landing. The final stretch of the movie combines elements of both books, The Shining and Doctor Sleep. As someone who’d read and seen all the material to that point, I realized that’s what was happening in the middle of it, and I was awestruck. To my mind, there’s not been any situation where an adaptation has done something like this, and writer/director Mike Flanagan deserves all the credit in the world for nailing it.  

Ford v Ferrari

At some point toward the end of watching Ford v Ferrari in the theater I said to myself, “I think is one of the most entertaining movies I’ve ever seen.” Months later, I still feel that way. It’s a long haul of a running time, but, man, it is never once dull. From the craftsmanship of creating such a seemingly difficult movie by James Mangold and his team to the lived-in performances of Damon and Bale, Ford v Ferrari can appeal to just about everyone who loves a thrill. Whether you’re a gearhead or not, there’s plenty to be invested in while watching this superb movie.

Favorites of 2019

10. "405 Method Not Allowed"

Episode Five of Season Four of Mr. Robot

Mr. Robot never made things easy for the viewer. In its four seasons, it really was all over the place. Maintaining the frenetic pace of the first season was unattainable in hindsight, but knowing that creator Sam Esmail always had the series ending in mind made runs like the majority of season two a little bit easier of a pill to swallow. By season three’s end, the show got its groove back, and season four may well prove to be the show’s greatest achievement. It certainly had the series’ greatest technical achievements, with every episode directed by Esmail himself. Some of the episodes were genre experiments, such as an Agatha Christie parlor room mystery and episode five, which was essentially a dialogue-less heist movie. Season four was an incredible homestretch to an iconic series, and television does not come in a more thrilling package than Mr. Robot's fifth episode this year.

9. "Volume 5: The Fool"

Episode Five of Too Old to Die Young

Have you ever watched something that you enjoyed immensely but would never think of recommending to anyone in your own life? Like you’d be concerned with putting a friendship at risk by saying, “Hey, give this a shot.” That was Too Old to Die Young for me. It inherently appeals to the slimmest possible audience and is off-putting in more ways than can be counted. It’s full of abhorrent sexual and violent content, even torture. Every single character is depraved. It tests the patience of every single pair of eyes that sits down to watch it. But there’s something about existence of these things in the cinematic world of Nicolas Winding Refn that made me unable to take my eyes off the show. Regardless of what was happening on the screen, even something like the irreparably damaging way episode five begins, I was rapt in the neon world of his creation. Perhaps it’s something about the juxtaposition of the truly awful things happening on screen and the gorgeous aesthetic result of the work. Episode five, “The Fool”, is the apex of this aesthetic achievement. It’s certainly in my top ten episodes of anything I saw this year. If you can envision an episode with everything described heretofore, and Barry Manilow being the most disconcerting thing, then maybe this show is for you. All that to say, I really loved this show… But maybe you shouldn’t watch it.

8. Season One of What We Do in the Shadows

Making a series out of Taika Waititi’s cinematic indie vampire comedy seems like a hyperspecific thing to do, but leave it to FX to adapt pieces of pop culture that no one else is considering and turn them into can’t-miss television. The film What We Do in the Shadows was ripe for adaptation. Done in mockumentary style, it has the interview breaks of classic comedic television comedies like The Office and Parks and Recreation. In the adaptation, a film crew follows a trio of overzealous vampires who set out for world domination from a house in Staten Island. Over the course of the first season, we learn the bizarre and hilarious eccentricities of each character while encountering various entities from each of their pasts. The main cast is flawless, and the supporting players round everything out perfectly. This series has the potential to be an FX mainstay for years to come.

7. Season One of The Righteous Gemstones

In the wrong hands, The Righteous Gemstones, a series about a superstar Christian minister and his insufferable adult children, could have been exactly that for the viewer: insufferable. It could have been unrelentingly scathing, mean and belittling. Granted, there is plenty about the megachurch industrial complex that can be attacked in a fictionally scathing manner, but the millions of people who attend such institutions are not necessarily deserving of the same sentiment. In the hands of Danny McBride, however, The Righteous Gemstones is a hilarious indictment of hypocrites who are also capable of capable of earnest moments. This series is so deftly helmed by Danny McBride and his longtime creative partners, it’s astounding there isn’t one weak link anywhere in the casting. The series is brimming belly laughs and will blindside you, not only with occasionally shocking vulgarity and perversity, with earned moments of sincerity. Like I did, you may think you know what you’re getting into with The Righteous Gemstones, but I guarantee you it isn’t anything like you expect.

6. Season Two of Fleabag

When a show has garnered nearly every accolade and won every award for its second season, there isn’t much else to say about it. Fleabag’s second season is truly a marvel. It’s hilarious, shocking and touching in equal measure. That first dinner episode is one of the greatest pieces of television I’ve ever seen. From just twelve episodes of a half-hour comedy, Phoebe Waller-Bridge has cemented herself as a comedic titan. To end a series at its absolute peak is one hell of a power move, and at this moment in time, Pheobe Waller-Bridge certainly has plenty of it.

5. The Lighthouse

It's a rare occurrence when a movie hijacks my brain and it’s all I think about for two weeks. It’s an even more rare occurrence when I see something that doesn’t definitively mean anything, and thus can figuratively mean anything. Even beyond that, it’s a rare balance when something that is so more aesthetically precious than most multiplex films, something that is so clearly “art”, isn’t insufferably pretentious. I, though, feel pretentious attempting to praise it because it is so unto itself. The movie would not work without world class actors like Pattinson and Dafoe, and they are top-tier in it. The Lighthouse is art made in such a way that each second commands your attention and begs to be scrutinized, much like “the light” itself. Deeply intriguing and unsettling, The Lighthouse is something whose effect on me was immediate and likely everlasting.

4. Season Two of Barry

The first season of Barry had such a perfect and neat ending that it made you wonder if more of the story was even necessary. We know all too well the excesses of television series that go well beyond what they should, but Bill Hader and Alec Berg are really onto something with Barry. The second season has multiple sections (the failed sniper attempt, the entirety of “ronny/lily”) that seemed like immediate iconic moments in comedy. The “ronny/lily” episode was far and away my favorite episode of television last year. Dropping 30 minutes of surreality into a straightforward show was a bold move and it worked wonderfully. While Barry is full of laughs, it is certainly violent. The violence is played to comedic effect many times, but the moments of examining the violent nature of Barry himself are where the lines of balance that the show toes really shine. The writers and creators have clear ideas that are honed in the writing room and it all comes out on the screen. These are expert craftspeople handling Barry, and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next.

3. Season Two of Succession

There was a period during which I watched the first few episodes of Succession that I resented everyone who told me this show was good. All the characters seemed reprehensible and I didn’t care one bit about the very conceit of the show, being who will succeed Logan Roy to become the next head of the billion-dollar company. I stuck with it and the humor that was peppered into the rest of the season made what I disliked about it a bit more palatable. I finished the first season and waited for the second in ambivalence.

The second season legitimately shocked me with how great it ended up being. It all boils down to the writing and the performances. There is no show I saw last year that gave me as many genuine belly laughs as Succession. Multiple times it nearly had me practically clapping alone in my house. Succession somehow presents an outright hilarious drama that compels you without you necessarily caring about the fate of most of its characters. When the stakes are so high and the characters are so well-written and performed, the entertainment value and investment in whatever ridiculousness comes next is compelling enough. Maybe Succession was this good all along and something changed about me. I won’t know for sure until a rewatch down the line, but as of right now, there is no greater show on TV than the one about spoiled billionaires on HBO.

2. Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood

It wasn’t until my third viewing of Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (henceforth referred to as OUATIH) that I made a connection between the movie itself and Quentin Tarantino’s career. We all know that OUATIH is an ode to the final moments of the Golden Age of Hollywood and that Rick Dalton and his career represent that. Similarly, we know that Tarantino aims to stop making movies after his tenth, which would be his next one. It made me realize how these are basically the final moments of living in a world where we revel in the excitement of a new Tarantino movie on the horizon. The run of these last three decades of film in which Tarantino has become arguably the most influential writer/director in the medium is about to end. It made me see OUATIH in a different, slightly more melancholy light. Rick Dalton wasn’t necessarily an important figure in the fictional Hollywood of the movie, but Tarantino unquestionably is in the real one. The unknown but hopeful way OUATIH ends in terms of where Rick might be headed, what his next chapter in life will be, is how I look at Tarantino. He’ll always be putting something out into the world in one form or another, but his time in this particular medium is almost done. With the '70s on the horizon in OUATIH and a new decade beginning here in 2020, only time will tell his story to come.

1. Parasite

(mild spoilers)

It’s a wonderful feeling at year's end when you finally see something that has been met with universal acclaim the world over and confirm that notion for yourself. I saw Parasite in a cozy 40 seat screening room in a non-profit film center in Nashville, a setting in which I’ve never been. It was the perfect sort of discombobulating ambiance for one of the most memorable first-time viewings of a movie in my life. When it begins, you know you’re in an expert’s hands. This is the perfect example of the take-a-screenshot-and-hang-it-on-your-wall movie. Everything is gorgeously composed, from the pristine quality of the Park home all the way down to the squalor of the Kim's. For as genuinely hilarious as Parasite is, there lurks this insidious feeling that something terrible is going to happen. You think it’s maybe going to be one of a few things, but I will never forget the moment of sheer astonishment and fear I had while in the throes of what transpires while that thing begins to bear out. If you’ve seen it, you’ll know. If not, you will. As any fan of the medium can attest, there’s really no feeling like the one you get when the credits roll on a movie and the people in the auditorium all take a few beats before moving out of their seats. It’s a rare feeling, and everyone with whom I shared that tiny room in Nashville felt we'd just watched one of the great pieces of cinema together. No foreign language film has ever won Best Picture at the Oscars, but I really hope that streak ends with Parasite. It was the best film of the year after all.

Pop Culture Favorites of 2018

It used to be really easy to narrow down what I liked in a given year to the arbitrary number of restrictions I made for myself when I started doing this in 2011. Even 15 seemed like a stretch. But the truth for 2018 is that there was a multitude of memorable material, so there has to be a little extra mention of a handful of things:

- The performances in the second season of HBO's The Deuce create the most lived-in characters on TV, and watching this season was one of the richest television experiences of 2018.

- A Neil Armstrong biopic may be a difficult thing to get excited about, as box office numbers reflect, but First Man has some of the most thrilling sequences of any movie in years. It's a restrained, expertly directed and enthralling drama that wisely refrains from genre cliches, like a training montage set to "Spirit in the Sky".

- The Favourite may be the funniest movie of the year. The three leads kill, and Yorgos Lanthimos is  one of the five most fascinating filmmakers in existence, but there was a serious missed opportunity in getting Nicholas Hoult some awards recognition. I will probably soon regret not putting this in the actual list.

- When it comes to TV casts, it doesn't get much better than the gang in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, but Tony Shalhoub is on another level. An absolute veteran, Shalhoub looks like he's having the time of his life and is giving one of the best performances on TV today.

Now, then. To the lists.

Singular Experience of 2018

Hereditary

I think Hereditary ruined my life.

By various points in life, you think you know your threshold for certain things. You know what foods you ought to avoid, when weather is too extreme, and generally what bothers you. I'm 29 years old. I thought I had most of those things figured out. We have the world in our pockets. We're exposed to more information on a daily basis than any group of humans that came before us, and desensitization has become a grave concern. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I learned last summer that the ability to have the very fabric of my existence be utterly decimated is something that can still happen.

Perhaps this is not the first time you've read something about Hereditary being the most deeply unsettling experience someone ever had watching a horror movie. If it is, well there you go. It seems that at least once a year, we get bombarded with reviews of some indie horror flick that's a game-changer, and because I've always been someone who seeks to figure out if there's anything that is really going to disturb me, I fall for it every time. Every one of them falls apart somewhere. It Follows is deeply creepy, until it isn't. It Comes at Night is never scary once. The Witch is about as close as we've come lately, but even it is an attention challenge for the most ardent moviegoer. But not Hereditary. I cannot emphasize what this movie can do to you. You must decide for yourself if it is a road you want to go down, because that bridge is getting burnt behind you as soon as you begin. Most disturbing is that maybe I don't know myself as well as I think I do. In the end, maybe such a test is worth taking, for the sake of one's character. For that, I have the utmost respect for this movie. Well played, Hereditary. You got me.

The Pretty Damn Goods of 2018

The quest for the second key in Ready Player One

The source material for Ready Player One is divisive to say the least. Its heart and ideas are there, but the execution leaves a bit to be desired. The Spielberg adaptation is somewhat of a redirect, but not necessarily toward the best result. However, there is a significant plot change regarding the middle portion of the book where the protagonists use their virtual reality avatars to enter the world of Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. It's less than 10 minutes of the movie, but an entirely new creation. It clearly exists only to service Spielberg himself. He is a well-documented Kubrick fanatic and was a personal friend of Kubrick in his lifetime. It's a diversion that comes entirely out of the blue to those who read the book, and it's one hell of a head trip for fans of Kubrick and The Shining. The in-theater experience gave me goosebumps and it's something I'll cherish forever.

The birth sequence in A Quiet Place

Almost every minute of A Quiet Place is masterfully directed and acted. Despite my expectations of a dialogue-less mainstream thriller being a miserable theater experience in regard to the audience, seeing this with a late-night crowd was one of the more memorable times in recent years. When a thriller is engaging enough to distract moviegoers from talking to one another, it creates for a unique shared experience in which you become one unit simultaneously reacting to the scares and suspense of what you came to see. The iconic moment that will no doubt live in decades of notoriety is the nearly unbearable birth sequence. Through Emily Blunt's incredible range of emotions and pain, the buildup becomes almost more than any viewer can stand. When she finally lets out her howl of pain, the fireworks go off, and Krasinski hauls ass out of the barn, I got goosebumps the likes of which I'd never gotten from a thriller.

Killing Eve

It wasn't until the Killing Eve mania last spring that I even realized I had access to BBC America. I then watched the first four episodes of Killing Eve in one morning. That isolated viewing experience is in my top five of the year. It is an absolute gas pedal-slamming thrill ride. Jodie Comer's Villanelle performance is pure psychotic joy. It really is bizarre that Sandra Oh got all the awards season spotlight and Comer got virtually shut out in all contests. Villanelle is an incredible, ahem, villain, and she objectively seemed like the full-on standout. There is a question of how Killing Eve can sustain its breakneck pace in future seasons, but this show as it is is certainly worthy of the praise it has received.

"Chapter Seven: Loud, Fast, and Keep Going"

Episode Seven of Season One of Barry

Barry is a solid example of something I hoped might be one of the next great shows exceeding those expectations. It deftly navigates the tricky balance of tones set up by its general premise: Barry, an ex-soldier turned hitman, takes a mark who is an acting student in Los Angeles, and Barry becomes immersed in that scene in the hopes of moving on from his life of violence. Real stakes are established quickly, but the humor of the show kind of softens a lot of those blows. Episode seven, though, is when the gravity of Barry's situation really shows its face. Speaking of faces, Bill Hader's facial expressions are really the star of this show. His ability to convey nervousness, terror and despair are unmatched in the industry. Episode seven has the best acting Bill Hader has ever done, and it's one of the best episodes of television in 2018. 

Season Two of GLOW

One of the underappreciated aspects in the current deluge of television shows is a show whose characters you're happy to spend some time with. There are plenty of heavy-hitting shows that are fulfilling, but they can be emotionally exhausting. GLOW is certainly not one of those shows. Most every one of the ladies and two gentlemen of GLOW has plenty of hardship to overcome in their respective storylines, but the balance of heartwarming humor and human drama on the show are what sets it apart from not only other Netflix shows, but the medium altogether. The scene with Alison Brie and Betty Gilpin in the hospital is as visceral an acting moment as anything else this year. The cast of this show, with the exception of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, is the best in the business.

Favorites of 2018

10. The Haunting of Hill House

Grief is a tricky thing to devote an entire series to. If there's a false note in any of the cast's performances, the entire thing falls apart. Few things are as insufferable as contrived performances and emotions that spiral into the realm of afternoon soaps. Luckily, the cast compiled to bring life to the writing and characters of The Haunting of Hill House succeed in every aspect. An estranged family airing out lifelong grievances and breaking down fences mid-mend is certainly well-trod territory in storytelling. But through the exceptionally talented crew who, from lighting and sound to the cinematographers and set designers, kept the tone thoroughly consistent, this show threw me for a loop in its ability to elicit overwhelming amounts of empathy.

I can't recall any horror movie or show whose primary objective in its use of ghosts wasn't to scare you. There are plenty of jump scares to be sure, but by the time we get to episodes five and six ("The Bent-Neck Lady" and "Two Storms") the presence of one ghost in particular becomes one of the most effective devices of eliciting despair and outright sadness toward a tortured soul that I've ever seen. In these moments specifically, and over the course of the entire show altogether, the juxtaposition of what everyone went through in the past laying over what's going on in the present, and vice versa, is truly masterful. The ride of this show is certainly not built for everyone, but I imagine many of the people who went on it, like me, are grateful.

9. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The Coen brothers are my all-timers. Their body of work is singular in global film. The brilliance of a given film is not always evident at the first watch. Inside Llewyn Davis in 2013 is one such example. I was underwhelmed, disappointed and depressed at the outset, and when I watched it again a couple years later I thought, "Oh, this is actually a masterpiece." Hail, Caesar! in 2016 proved to be another experience that was initially difficult to enjoy. On a rewatch soon after, though, that opinion unfortunately held up. That's the thing about every single Coen brothers movie: they demand multiple viewings.

The Coens and Netfilx is a marriage I never thought we'd see. Netflix's original film catalog is of unusually low quality, so the worries were significant that Buster Scruggs would be a bust. Very soon into the film, you realize that will not be the case. While the bulk of the contents of The Ballad of Buster Scruggs are unusually dour, the trademark Coen tone of voice is as masterful as ever. From the homicidal thesaurus that is the eponymous Buster Scruggs in the opening vignette to the existential final stagecoach ride, this collection of short films stands among the best work they've done. The discussion of "Which one was your favorite?" has been a fulfilling and enlightening conversation across the internet, and a rare experience altogether. True to Coen form, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs provides for a decidedly unusual experience, but it wouldn't feel right if it wasn't.

8. The music video for

"This is America" - Childish Gambino

In the mid-2000s, when the "back when MTV still played music videos" conversation was still pretty fresh, we had no idea that we were still actually being flooded with videos on the music channels of the day. Looking back, it's bizarre how quickly YouTube and its easy accessibility negated the very existence of a music channel. Music videos, prevalent as they still are, were a different animal in the pre-YouTube world. In those days it seemed that the music always came into the world first, and the video was the great exercise of the artist's visual interpretation of said song. Today, a major artist's song release is whenever the video that has already been filmed drops on YouTube, as was the case with Childish Gambino's "This is America".

The release of this video was like both of those music video cultures coalescing. I don't remember a time in my life where a music video was the focal point of the cultural conversation for multiple weeks. The video's foreground is so visually arresting that it took me upward of 20 views to see what all is going on in the background, like people swan diving off catwalks. Credit goes out to Donald Glover's perpetual shooting partner Hiro Murai for a great deal of this triumphant work. The unimpeachable greatness of the video is also a distraction from the fact that the song itself is (hot take?) actually pretty boring. Nevertheless, the period of time where we lived in the immediate wake of this video's release is one I'll remember for the rest of my life. It felt great to have the power of a music video mainlined back into our cultural veins.

7. Mission: Impossible - Fallout

I guess at some point Tom Cruise decided he had no more time for dramatic acting and would fully commit life and limb to being the world's greatest action star. Since Ghost Protocol, we have come to expect the M:I movies to have these "what in the hell will he put himself through now?" stunt centerpieces. In this sixth, and best, iteration of the Ethan Hunt saga, there are multitudes. It really is astounding what Cruise continues to put himself through for the entertainment of the masses. Knowing what we know about his history as a person, I guess it's easy to say his mind isn't like everyone else's.

The execution of the movie itself makes for the best action movie this side of Christopher Nolan or Mad Max: Fury Road. The IMAX cinematography in the giant action scenes is incredible. While there is a James Bond-ish element to these movies, in that you always expect the hero to save the day, the Mission: Impossible series quietly makes the case for the best action film series of all time. What Cruise has done as Hunt, not only at his age, but over twenty years time is the most consistent run of an action character we've ever had. Whenever his vessel tires out, we may never see his like again. Relish it.

6. First Reformed

A movie about a priest whose life is culminating in moral and existential crises does not sound like anyone's idea of a good time. Material such as this is almost never presented in any way other than beating you over the head with cliches. Honestly, First Reformed is kind of a tough hang, but Paul Schrader presents a drama that deftly addresses the grave concerns about what world we will reap and the levels of existential complicity we have as its inhabitants. Here we have characters who toil over these conflicts in a manner we rarely see in cinema. The obsessive despair is reminiscent of John B. McLemore from S Town podcast infamy. What one does when faced with the seeming inevitability that the planet is irreversibly shuffling its feet toward the end of the world is something humanity has not faced with any proximate likelihood until now. We watch the character of Reverend Toller face that test to unforgettable conclusion.

Ethan Hawke's performance is a subtle masterpiece of the art of acting. His performance was the most lopsidedly awarded in any category for the 2018 awards season, and his shutout of the Academy Awards is true robbery. This is one of those movies we'll look back on as a diamond in the rough of its time; it didn't have the style to grab everyone's attention, but it will prove to be a standout of this year, and surely the decade.

5. A Star is Born

At this point, fawning any more over the unexpected greatness of the fourth iteration of A Star is Born is most assuredly dead horse-beating territory. Oh well.

By the very nature of its existence, ASIB owes much of its effectiveness to the decades of its forbears, but nothing can be taken away from what Bradley Cooper and Gaga bring out of this age-old tale. Their chemistry is the triumph of the project. It's full of iconic moments that will live in Hollywood lore forevermore. The slow reveal of the title credits, "La Vie en Rose" in a drag bar, the nose tracing, running on a private plane with your best friend toward a life-changing show, Sam Elliott backing out of the driveway... The moments are endless. The memes have proven that. But this is the Titanic of this generation. Jackson and Ally are Jack and Rose. They are the new star-crossed lovers we'll either be referencing with sincerity or lampooning with ridicule for decades to come.

It's no surprise how good the cast is. What's most disarming is how great Bradley Cooper's directorial eye is. The frame-ups, the editing choices, the immersion of the live music scenes, the intimacy of private moments. The movie can be overwhelming at times, and the very end of it is as blindsiding as any moment in movie history, but there can be no doubt that the 2018 version of A Star is Born is a tale that's built to last.

4. Escape at Dannemora

When I first saw the poster for Escape at Dannemora last fall with the names Patricia Arquette, Benicio Del Toro and Paul Dano headlining the top and “directed by Ben Stiller” below the title, my brain ceased its ability process information. I could not compute that three of the best actors in the business were starring in a show about the New York prison break and that Derek Zoolander was going to helm the entire thing. It was one of the most anticipated TV events of the year, and it delivered in ways that I could never have expected.

Ben Stiller basically directed a character piece that stands alongside the great gritty crime dramas of the 1970s. He immerses you in the everyday, the minutiae of a handful of blue collar lives in northern New York. He gives you a sense of what life is like for residents of the area, for people who go to work and interact and coexist with killers. Patricia Arquette’s disappearance into Joyce Mitchell is a wonder to behold, one that we’ll continue to look back on as one of the great screen performances of all time. In her trip around the awards circuit this year, Arquette continually says she had her mind blown by Benicio Del Toro’s acting choices. One in particular is as wild as I’ve ever seen. You expect Del Toro to be great in everything, but there are layers to his greatness, and this show unearthed one such layer that’d we’d never seen. Swole Paul Dano is frankly outclassed, but he has plenty of moments to shine, such as being the main workhorse of the escape itself. The shock of the show is how incredible Eric Lange is as Joyce’s husband Lyle. He’s so convincing in the performance that I questioned if this person actually had a legitimate handicap, only to find out he’s “that guy” you’ve seen in tons of things, specifically as a Dharma douche in Lost.

Though the prison break is the show’s raison d’etre, it occurred to me in the days after I completed the series that, as terrible as some of her actions and decisions are, the show is as much about Joyce’s personal escape as Matt and Sweat’s physical escape. It’s a taxing journey that doesn’t end well for anyone involved, but it’s a thoroughly satisfying one for the viewer.

3. Roma

It's a great moment when you confirm that the most acclaimed movie of the year is actually the best movie of the year. For a filmmaker whose calling card has become executing large-scale choreographed scenes, Roma is as intimate as anything Alfonso Cuaron could possibly make while still maintaining those grand elements. It's an intimate and personal, yet sweeping and epic ride through a year in the life of a Mexican maid and the family she serves, all conducted by an absolute master at the peak of his powers. It's one of those movies that looks so beautiful at most points that you could pause it, print out that still and hang it as a portrait on your wall. It's full of moments that, even if I never watched it again, I'll remember for the rest of my life.

As Roma was a Netflix release for the majority of the viewing public, I was fortunate enough to have watched it on a decent arrangement. I implore anyone who has yet to see it to not watch it on something like a laptop or, god forbid, a phone. How one watches Roma means as much as anything. It's filmed in crisp, clean, glorious black and white. It bursts with the sounds of everything from bustling city centers to the natural noise of the untamed countryside. Not much more can be said about the greatness of Roma that hasn't already been said. On Oscar night, it could become the first foreign language film to win Best Picture. In recent years, where which movie wins Best Picture weirdly doesn't matter much anymore, the Academy has a chance to get that decision definitively correct. I hope they do.

2. Red Dead Redemption 2

If you were online at all in 2018, it was impossible to ignore the (sometimes excessive) global conversation around RDR2. I'm not really a gamer. I was raised on SEGA Genesis, N64 and the first two eras of PlayStation, but I lost general interest after high school. That is, until I learned they'd made Grand Theft Auto in the old west. After I completed Red Dead Redemption in 2010, I played exactly two games: FIFA 15 and Red Dead Redemption again. The experience of playing RDR1 was the greatest of my life to that point. When the day finally arrived for its sequel, it immediately proved to be a game for the ages.

Knowing full well how many millions of people have played or are playing the same game across the globe, the journey feels like a extraordinarily personal experience. The outcomes are set, but the journey differs for everyone. John Marston in RDR1 is my favorite video game protagonist of all time. That voice is truly iconic, and I'll always have his various inflections in my head. I never thought another character would ever come compare to him, but Arthur Morgan is pretty damn close.

RDR2's greatness cannot be overstated. It is an unimpeachable masterpiece. The scope of the world itself is clearly groundbreaking in the medium altogether. It's a world full of endless discoveries and one we'll all relish in for years to come.

1. "Teddy Perkins"

Episode Six of Season Two of Atlanta

For the sake of spoilers, this may be the shortest number one blurb I've done. But this episode felt straightaway like one of the best television episodes of all time. I immediately watched it again. I went to sleep and watched it again the next morning. It's sensational. It's unlike any episode of Atlanta that came before it, and unlike anything I've ever seen. Before Atlanta ever aired, the word was that the show was going to be "Twin Peaks with rappers." We certainly get scattered moments of that in season one, but season two is full-on Lynch Land, part dream and part nightmare. "Teddy Perkins" falls squarely in the latter.